The TV in my room has gotten to the point of being insulting to the sports junky that I am. The 12-inch Toshiba disaster is such that when you’re watching games, you can’t even see the score in the corner of the screen. Not exactly a good sign.The digital age caught up to my TV and I had to take action. Thursday was my day off, so I went to Best Buy and placed an order for an upgrade. I’m not sure how I’m going to get rid of my old TV. The thought recently crossed my mind of dropping it down a flight of stairs or beating the darn thing with a baseball bat, but that’s likely because I just finished watching Season 3 of Prison Break on DVD. Knowing me, I’ll probably just take the Goodwill donation route.Despite having the night off, I didn’t think adding to my expenses would be the best option, all due respect to the underrated atmosphere of the Eldridge on Thursdays. So I stayed in and checked out some Big 12 stuff online instead.[Let’s start with this rather puzzling piece from the Bleacher Report][1]: **Despite having five teams ranked in the Top 14 of this year’s AP football poll, the Big 12 is overrated**, so says the article. I have to give this guy credit. He did his research and crunched numbers like he was taking an advanced calculus exam.But come on – overrated? Not in 2008. If you take a look at the statistics, you’ll see that the analysis stems from the past five years. Thing is, the Big 12 went from being a good conference to a great conference just last year, with the emergence of Kansas and Missouri. The Big 12 went 5-3 in bowl games last year, second only to the SEC (7-2). I don’t think you can call the Big 12 overrated for the upcoming season based on a study from the past five years. The conference has changed since then. The spread offense is new and making defensive coordinators everywhere weep. Coaches have been shuffled and programs are different than they were five years ago (see Kansas and Missouri again).The Einstein-esque statistics are nice, but it’s overanalysis. If we’re talking 2008, give me Oklahoma, Missouri, Texas Tech, Texas and Kansas (in that order) against any other conference, one through five, and I’ll take my chances.Elsewhere, [ESPN.com blogger Tim Griffin ranks the best football coaching jobs in the Big 12][2], taking into account factors of prestige, livability of the city, tradition, facilities and the chance to succeed at the national level. Here’s his list:1. Texas 2. Oklahoma 3. Nebraska 4. Texas A&M 5. Colorado 6. Missouri 7. Texas Tech 8. Oklahoma State 9. Kansas 10. Baylor 11. Kansas State 12. Iowa StateThoughts?**Also, isn’t it hilarious that the last two teams on that list will square off ** [in epic battles in 2009 and 2010][3] at Kansas City, Mo.’s Arrowhead Stadium? UT-OU in Dallas at a neutral site? Sure. KU-Mizzou at Arrowhead? Fine. Kansas State-Iowa State? I’d rather watch the Little League World Series live at Kauffman Stadium.As always, discuss. Ten days until Prison Break returns to my TV – thankfully, I’ll have an upgraded model by then! [1]: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/48622-the-numbers-dont-lie-the-big-12-is-overrated [2]: http://myespn.go.com/blogs/big12/0-1-237/Ranking-the-Big-12-coaching-jobs.html [3]: http://www.kstatesports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=400&ATCLID=1566055
Big 12 Conference presidents have earmarked more money for enhanced NCAA compliance checks and other regulatory efforts.
League presidents approved $150,000 in additional regulatory spending for compliance audits at each university by an outside firm, enhanced drug testing and an ongoing program to prevent and monitor gambling.
“You can probably never put too much money into compliance,” said Kansas University chancellor Robert Hemenway who attended the two-day presidents meeting earlier this week in Irving, Texas. “And we felt we needed a bit stronger drug testing.”
Compared with the record $105 million that will be distributed to Big 12 schools, the extra money is a minuscule amount. Nevertheless, Big 12 commissioner Kevin Weiberg said it will send a symbolic message to coaches, athletes and others about oversight.
“The presidents just sensed that it was time to send a very clear signal about how serious we want to be about these issues,” Oklahoma State president David Schmidly said. “We’ve had a few issues. Let’s get them corrected, be proactive and make it clear that we intend to have the best compliance environment possible.”
The presidents were concerned about mainly off-the-field problems the past 18 months. Weiberg didn’t point out specific incidents, saying many were publicly known.
Past compliance checks by the Big 12 of member universities, each which has its own NCAA compliance officers, were voluntary in nature. Specialized outside firms now will conduct the checks.
“This will have more of an audit feel to it,” Weiberg said. “It’s a more serious attempt to take a look at systems on campus. It’s not intended to be a gotcha system, but it’s more intended if we see deficiencies to let schools know expectations that things will be corrected.”
Weiberg and Schmidly, chair of the Big 12 board, said more money and enhancements were possible when the program is evaluated in the future. Every school will go through a compliance check within the next three years.
The presidents also approved the league’s plan for instant replay in football, and the money required for its implementation.
Weiberg said that with the NCAA’s approval of a 12th game starting in 2006, the league would look at nine- and 10-game conference models. Still, he said there was no push to increase from the current eight conference games.
Junior outfielder A.J. Van Slyke is the lone Kansas University baseball player to earn a first-team berth on the All-Big 12 Conference team as selected by league coaches.
Jayhawks named to the second team were first baseman Jared Schweitzer, second baseman Ryne Price, outfielder Matt Baty and pitcher Kodiak Quick.
Earning honorable mention were shortstop Ritchie Price, catcher Sean Richardson, outfielder Gus Milner and relief pitcher Don Czyz.
Van Slyke, son of former major league outfielder Andy Van Slyke, has had a breakout season. The junior from Ladue, Mo., is hitting .324 and leads the Jayhawks in home runs (12) and RBIs (57) going into the conference tournament.
Van Slyke transferred to KU in 2004 from Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va. A part-time starter as a soph in ’04, Van Slyke hit .360, but only had five extra-base hits and eight RBIs.
Lawrence High product Curtis Ledbetter, a junior at Nebraska, was a first-team selection at first base.
Kansas University placed a league-leading nine players on the Academic All-Big 12 Conference baseball team — six on the first team and three on the second.
Jayhawks named to the first team are seniors Mike Bessolo, Mike Dudley, Andy Scholl and Mike Zagurski and juniors Matt Baty and A.J. Van Slyke. The second-teamers are seniors Jake Kauzlarich, Clint Schambach and Scott Sharpe.
To qualify, players must record a 3.00 grade-point average or higher either cumulative or the two previous semesters.
